Personal computers, or PCs, have become ubiquitous and exist in forms such as desktop, notebook (laptop), or several ultra-portable configurations among others. This pervasiveness has led to the development of a large assortment of increasingly sophisticated peripherals. In general, computer peripherals are devices that connect to a computing system to facilitate certain tasks and/or implement features not contained within the standard or base computer, including medical devices and other like equipment. However, the stringent electrical safety requirements and regulations which exist for medical equipment has circumscribed their use with PCs as peripherals. For example, electrical leakage currents must be severely limited to maintain patient isolation, yet computers and their peripherals are not commonly designed to accommodate such restrictions. One approach to alleviate these requirements is to employ an isolation transformer to power the computer and peripherals, but such a solution is expensive, bulky in size and weight, and relatively unsuited to portability. An alternative of custom-made power supplies is impractical, since a manufacturer of peripherals cannot design isolated power supplies for all conceivable PCs. What is needed is an effective means of providing computer peripheral safety.